Ghost

For those who have not completed Xenoblade Chronicles X, this page may contain spoilers regarding the plot. Discretion is advised.

The Ares pilot fighting a Ghost Gigantic in the White Whale's residential sector

The Ghost (Japanese: ゴースト, Gōsuto) faction is the enemy of the Samaar Federation in Xenoblade Chronicles X. The Ghost faction and Samaar Federation are two interstellar alien civilizations which formed on the basis of their member species' common physical composition. Ghosts are the biological weapons used by the faction. The actual name of the faction itself is unknown, and there is no information about the xenoform species within it.

Ghosts are purple and organic in appearance. Every Ghost contains a core of antimatter, which has the potential to do serious damage if destroyed. (When matter and antimatter come into contact, they annihilate each other and their masses are converted to radiative energy, producing an explosion.) There are a few known types of Ghosts: the normal Ghost, Ghost Large, Ghost Gigantic, Battleship-type Ghost, and God Ghost. A Ghost Large can transform between a humanoid form and a flight form. The Ghost mothership resembles a comet and appears twice as large as the Samaar Federation mothership. Although unidentified, it has the characteristics of a Ghost so it may itself be one. If so, it would be the largest known lifeform in the universe of X.

The Xenoblade Chronicles X Special Edition artbook contains artwork of a Battleship-type Ghost and describes their anatomy. Xenoblade X: The Secret File - Art of Mira‏‎ contains concept art of Ghosts drawn by Yoko Tsukamoto. All four known types of Ghosts from the opening of Xenoblade Chronicles X are shown and identified. It also includes the God Ghost and the humanoid form of the Ghost Large, neither of which ever appear in the game. It does not include the Ghost mothership or give any information about the faction. The text notes that the glowing feature in the center of a Ghost is alike to the one on the back of the Ares, but the word for this glowing feature is blacked out.

Story

Elma knew the war between the Samaar Federation and the Ghosts would eventually spread to Earth, and arrived on the planet in 2026 to warn the humans and prepare them to evacuate.

An army of Ghosts fought the Samaar Federation in a battle that took place over Earth in July of 2054. The army was composed of many Battleship-type Ghosts surrounding a mothership. While the Ghosts attacked the Samaar Federation in the atmosphere, their lasers also hit Earth. Ghosts which fell to Earth by Samaar's attacks caused explosions when they landed, annihilating large swathes of the surface. Eventually, there was an enormous explosion above Earth that reduced the entire planet to rubble. It is unclear what became of the Ghost army, which seemed to be engulfed in the explosion.

Ghosts pursued the humans who evacuated Earth in an apparent attempt to destroy them. In 2056, Ghosts caught up with the White Whale and attacked it. They phased through the outer shell of the residential sector, but an unidentified young man, along with Elma, fought them off using the original Ares. The hull was severely damaged, and the ship broke apart as it fell toward the planet Mira which suddenly appeared.

Ghosts only appear in the opening cutscene of Xenoblade Chronicles X. Unlike the Samaar Federation, which the Ganglion are a part of, Ghosts have no role in the plot after the humans arrive on Mira.